Black and White

Black and White

This week, I was asked to do a black and white ad for a publication. Black and white. Hmm. 

When I was in school, my books were black words on white paper, but I hear from my teaching friends that there are screens in classes now. There are still people who read actual books, and probably even newspapers, but I find myself more likely to read my Kindle when I travel or use my treadmill, and that may or may not be black and white. I would venture a guess that most of us rarely actually see much that is just black and white in the real world anymore. 

6" x 6"
Painted with the finest quality acrylic heavy-body paint on Art Bite panel

And, oh boy, does that preach! (Warning: I'm 'bout to preach...) 

I have been reading in the Old Testament book of Ezekiel for quite a while now. It is a long book of the Bible, and it has a lot of difficult passages. A lot. I have seen that Israel was about to experience the consequences of their sin - God repeatedly called out their "abominations" in the first part of the book. Of course, it is easy to read of ancient cultures in a disconnected way and see that their choices deserved punishment. (By the way, God cleansed them of those particular sins and brought them back after dealing with them. What a gracious God!) Anyway, I see so many parallels to our culture. We, as a culture, offer our children to the "idol" of choice. We are bloodthirsty in our television watching habits. And we have gradually come to the belief that God's word doesn't really mean ____. We have explained it all away as allegory or story (if we read it at all) and no longer believe or obey anything. It is no longer black and white. Now it is a "screen" and we can change it with a touch or a click. 

(Don't misunderstand me. I LOVE color, as you know if you have followed my paintings for any time at all! I believe it is a gift from God. I see much good in the advances of culture and am very thankful to travel with my Kindle instead of carrying several books.)

But there are actually some things that ARE "black and white" - right and wrong. And the written word of God, the Bible, shows us what they are. It may not be easy to understand every part of His word, but is important that we read the Book and spend time interacting with the Author. Who, as a matter of fact, is also the Author and Giver of color. 

Ezekiel 36:26-29a "And I will give you a new heart, and a new spirit I will put within you. And I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. And I will put my Spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes and be careful to obey my rules. You shall dwell in the land that I gave to your fathers, and you shall be my people, and I will be your God. And I will deliver you from all your uncleannesses..."